Display package

ABSTRACT

A display package is provided for the display of a promotional item on a bottle having closure. The display package is formed from a first piece of a plastic material and a second piece of a plastic material that are sealed together defining a volume wherein a promotional item may be placed. The display package has an aperture that has a fastening means to connect the display package to bottle. The display package is formed by molecular fusing or welding the two plastic pieces together providing increased security measure against pilferage. Preferably the promotional package is at least partially transparent so that the item inside can be seen.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0001] The invention relates to a package for display of promotionalitems and more particularly to a package for the display of promotionalitems that are attached to the packaging of other sale items.

BACKGROUND

[0002] Marketers have used a variety of techniques to get consumers tosample their new or existing products. Such techniques have included themailing of samples to households, as well as the distribution of samplesor free products to potential consumers in stores, sidewalks or otherpublic places.

[0003] Another known technique used by marketers is giving away freeproducts or product samples with the purchase of other products. Forexample, marketers sometimes give free samples of related products suchas an after shave product with the sale of shaving cream. It is alsowell known for marketers to give a free product or product sample of anunrelated product with the sale of products. For example, a stuffedanimal may be given to a customer with the purchase of a cleaningproduct.

[0004] Sometimes the free product or product sample is provided by thesalesperson at the checkout counter. On other occasions the product orproduct sample is attached to the sale item.

[0005] Retailers invite and enjoy the opportunity to give away freeproducts or product samples as this tends to lead to increased sales.However, retailers have encountered problems of pilfering of products orproduct samples that are attached to sale items.

[0006] For example, retailers have encountered problems with thepackaging of the sale item being tampered with by a consumer or even anemployee and the product or product sample is separated and takenwithout the purchase of the sale item. While this may obviously cost theretailer a potential sale of an item, it may also make the shelving lookuntidy as wrapping from the packaging may sit loosely on the storeshelves and the products on the shelf do not look alike. Additionally,the primary product that is for sale may be damaged. However, retailersenjoy the opportunity to give away a free product or product sample withthe sale of an item as this acts to entice consumers to purchase aproduct that is on sale they may not otherwise purchase.

[0007] Marketers also enjoy the opportunity to give away free productsor product samples as this may entice a consumer to purchase themarketer's product thus increasing the sale of their products in lieu ofcompetitors products and further provides them with the opportunity toget a consumer to try a new or existing product in hopes of future salesof that product to that consumer.

[0008] Therefore, retailers and marketers have a need for a package thatwill enable a product, product sample or the like to be attached to anddisplayed on a sale item for display on the store shelf that providesincreased security measures against pilferage.

[0009] Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide apackage for attachment to a sale item that displays a product or productsample and provides security against pilferage of the free products orproduct samples that are being given away.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0010] According to the invention there is provided a package for thedisplay of a promotional item on a bottle having a finish having anannular mouth and a closure having a bottom rim. The display packagecomprising:

[0011] (i) a first piece of a plastic material,

[0012] (ii) a second piece of a plastic material wherein the first pieceof plastic material and the second piece of plastic material are sealedtogether defining a volume wherein a promotional item may be placed. Thedisplay package has an aperture that has a fastening means to connectthe display package to bottle. The display package is formed bymolecular fusing or welding the two plastic pieces together providingincreased security measure against pilferage.

[0013] Preferably the promotional package is at least partiallytransparent so that the item inside can be seen.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0014] The features, advantages and objects of the present inventionwill more fully be understood by consideration of the drawingsdescribing embodiments thereof in which:

[0015]FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a package in accordance with thepresent invention in combination with a bottle and closure.

[0016]FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a package in accordance with thepresent invention in combination with a bottle with the closure removed.

[0017]FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the pieces that make up thepackage of the present invention.

[0018]FIG. 4 is a cross sectional view along line 4-4 of FIG. 1.

[0019]FIG. 5 is a bottom plan view of a package in accordance with thepresent invention.

[0020] In each of the figures above, like numerals indicate like items.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0021] The term “comprising” is meant not to be limiting to anysubsequently stated elements but rather to encompass non-specifiedelements of major or minor functional importance. In other words thelisted steps, elements or options need not be exhaustive. Whenever thewords “including” or “having” are used, these terms are meant to beequivalent to “comprising” as defined above.”

[0022] With reference to FIG. 1, an embodiment of the display package 10of the present invention is shown. A bottle 1 is shown having a displaypackage 10 attached thereto. The bottle 1 has an annular mouth 3 and aclosure 5 having a bottom rim 7. The bottom rim 7 is the bottom rim ofthe closure that is exposed when the closure is placed on the bottle 1.Thus, any inner sleeve or the like of the closure is not considered tobe the inner rim of the closure. For example, as shown in FIG. 2, innersleeve 9 of closure 5 is not considered to be the bottom rim 7 of theclosure 5.

[0023] The display package 10 is comprised of a first piece of plasticmaterial 14 and a second piece of plastic material 16. The first pieceof plastic material 14 and a second piece of plastic material 16 definea volume 18 therein. The package 10 is shown having a promotional item12 contained within the volume 18. The volume 18 is where the article tobe displayed in the display package 10 is to be held. The volume 18 maybe of any size or shape that is desired and depends upon the article tobe held in the display package 10. Preferably, the volume 18 is of asize and shape such that the outermost edges of the display package 10do not extend past the outermost edges of the bottle and/or cap. By thisit is meant that the display package does not extend above the highestpart of the bottle and/or cap that the display package is attached toand does not extend beyond the width and depth of the bottle and/or cap.Thus, the display package will not require any changes to any existingsecondary packaging that is based upon the dimensions of the bottle andis used for shipping or display of the bottles. Accordingly, duringshipping or display in secondary packaging, the display package willconsume what is otherwise empty space in the secondary packaging.

[0024] The two plastic pieces 14, 16 that make up the display package 10of the present invention are permanently sealed together to provide apackage that is not easily opened thereby creating greater securityagainst pilfering. By “permanent” it is meant that the two pieces 14, 16are not readily separable from each other along the seal.

[0025] Thus, in order for the package 10 to be opened, the package mustbe cut or torn. The package may be opened along the seal but the twoplastic pieces are not readily separable from each other. As discussedherein, the two pieces of plastic are sealed such that there is noorientation to the separation of the sealed pieces. Thus, one must makea cut in the display package in order to open the display package. Oncea cut is made in the display package, the package may be torn open. Thismakes it more difficult for one to pilfer the contents of the package asit is more difficult to open the package without a tool to make a cut init.

[0026] A preferred method of permanently sealing the two pieces togetheris by means of molecular fusing or welding. The molecular fusing orwelding of two plastic materials together is known in the art. Suchmolecular fusing or welding is performed by numerous companies such asOliner Fibre Co., Inc. The molecular fusing or welding of two plasticpieces together is commonly done in the art by means of heat sealing. Inthis process, the two pieces are placed together such that they overlapin the areas that are to be sealed together. The pieces are heldtogether at the point of sealing by a heat sealing machine. Then heat isapplied to the areas to be sealed. Preferably heat is provided via radiofrequency energy. Radio frequency energy is known in the art as a methodof providing heat to such sealing processes and is used by companiessuch as Oliner Fibre Co., Inc. to seal two pieces of plastics together.Once sealed, the two pieces 14, 16 form sealed portions 20, where thetwo pieces 14, 16 are not readily separable. These sealed portions 20are shown in FIG. 4 is being around the aperture as well as around theoutside edge of the display package.

[0027] In order for the display package to be opened, at least one ofthe two plastic pieces must be pierced and the package then torn open.As previously mentioned, while the package may be torn open along theseal, there is no orientation to the separation thus making the sealedpieces not readily separable and making it more difficult to open thepackaging. This provides increased security over other packaging methodssuch as a shrink wrap or a rigid case with a soft readily removablecover which may be more easily torn open and the product removed.

[0028] As shown in the figures, the display package 10 also has anaperture 22 for fastening the package 10 to the bottle 1. Preferably,the aperture 22 is circular in shape. The diameter of the aperture 22should be slightly smaller than the maximum outside diameter ordimension of the bottle closure 5 from the bottom rim 7 and above to thetop of the closure 5. By slightly smaller it is meant that the diameterof the aperture 22 is up to 35% smaller than the maximum outsidediameter or dimension of the bottle closure 5 from the bottom rim 7 andabove to the top of the closure 5. It is preferable that the diameter ofthe aperture 22 is up to 25% smaller than the maximum outside diameteror dimension of the bottle closure 5 from the bottom rim 7 and above tothe top of the closure 5. It is more preferable that the diameter of theaperture 22 is up to 15% smaller, and even more preferably 10% smaller,and even more preferably 5% or 2% smaller than the maximum outsidediameter or dimension of the bottle closure 5 from the bottom rim 7 andabove to the top of the closure 5. The aperture 22 has fastening means24 which comprises a flange 26 that protrudes inwardly from the innerwall 28 of the aperture 22. The flange 26 extends inwardly from theinner wall 28 of the aperture 22. The flange 26 runs along at least partof the inner wall 28 of the aperture 22. The inner wall 28 of theaperture 22 has at least one recessed region 30 where the flange 26continues along the recessed region 30. The recessed region 30 orregions are areas where the inner wall 28 of the aperture 22 arerecessed away from center of the aperture 22. The recessed region(s)provides an area of greater flexibility for the flange 26 so that theflange 26 may flex enabling the display package to be inserted over theclosure 5. The areas of the inner wall 28 of the aperture 22 that arenot recessed have a wall that is generally perpendicular to the flange26. This region is less flexible than the recessed regions 30 andprovide added resistance when the display package is attempted to beremoved. This provides an additional security measure against pilferageof the display package and its contents. The combination of moreflexible recessed regions and less flexible non-recessed regions hasbeen found to provide the flexibility to secure the display package onthe bottle by simply sliding over the bottle closure while providingresistance for removal of the display package without removal of thebottle cap. Thus, the aperture with the flange along the inner wallflexes enough to enable the display package to be put onto the bottlewith the closure attached and provides resistance to removal withoutremoval of the bottle closure. This makes the use of the display packagemore cost effective as the bottle does not need to be disassembled toattached the display package to the bottle. The display package caneasily be placed on the bottle with the bottle in its finished, readyfor condition.

[0029] Preferably the plastic material for the first piece 14 and secondpiece 16 is rigid or semi-rigid as is typical of molded plastics. Byrigid or semi-rigid it is meant that the material retains it shape aftermanufacture. Accordingly, products such as paper or paper like films andshrink wrap would nit be considered to be rigid or semi-rigid.

[0030] It is also preferable that at least one of plastic pieces 14 and16 is transparent. It is even more preferable if both pieces of plasticare transparent. However, while not the preferable embodiment, it isstill within the scope of the present invention if both pieces aretranslucent or opaque.

[0031] The term “transparent” as used in this specification is intendedto connote its usual dictionary definition. Thus, a transparent piece ofplastic, like glass, allows ready viewing of objects behind it. Bycontrast, a translucent plastic, although allowing light to passthrough, causes the light to be so scattered that it will be impossibleto clearly identify objects behind the translucent plastic.

[0032] Within the context of this invention, a plastic material isdeemed to be transparent if the maximum transmittance of light of anywavelength in the range of 200 to 800 nm through a sample 10 cm thick isat least 1%. A plastic material is deemed translucent if the maximumtransmittance of such light through the sample is between 0.01% and 1%.Finally, a sample is deemed opaque if the maximum transmittance of suchlight is below 0.01%. This transmittance can be easily measured byplacing a solid sample of the required thickness in the light beam pathof a UV-VIS Spectrophotometer such as the Hewlett-Packard 8451A DiodeArray Spectrophotometer. This method of assessing transparency is highlysensitive to optical clarity while independent of color.

[0033] The display package may be made of any molded plastic materialincluding without limitation polymers and monomers. Preferably thedisplay package is made of PVC (polyvinyl chloride), polypropylene orHDPE (high density polyethylene).

[0034] The display package of the present invention may be used with anytype of bottle that has a closure. For example, without limitation, thedisplay package may be used with bottles for laundry detergent, liquidsoaps, shampoos and conditioners, food products, and home care productssuch as cleaning products.

1. A package for the display of a promotional item on a bottle having afinish having an annular mouth and a closure having a bottom rim, saidpackage comprising: (i) a first piece of a plastic material, (ii) asecond piece of a plastic material wherein said first piece and saidsecond piece are sealed together defining a volume wherein a promotionalitem may be placed.
 2. A package according to claim 1 wherein said sealis formed by molecular sealing or welding the said first and said secondpiece of rigid plastic materials together.
 3. A package according toclaim 1 wherein said seal is formed by radio frequency sealing.
 4. Apackage according to claim 1 wherein at least one of said first orsecond piece are made of a transparent material.
 5. A package accordingto claim 1 wherein said package has an aperture that has fastening meansfor fastening said package to said bottle.
 6. A package according toclaim 5 wherein said fastening means in said aperture is comprised of aflange along at least part of the inner wall of said aperture and atleast one recessed region along inner wall of said aperture.
 7. Apackage according to claim 1 wherein said package does not exceed theextended dimensions of the bottle that it is adjoined to.